Search Results for: student engagement

Before we talk about how to use classroom management hand signals, we need to talk about why so many teachers try them and then give up within two weeks. The reason isn’t that the strategy fails. It’s that most advice you find online treats hand signals like a simple hack: pick some signs, post a poster, and boom, silence. That might … Read more

I’ve spent a lot of nights lying awake thinking about consequences, as I’m sure you have as well. Not the kind you read about in classroom management books…the tidy hierarchies that look great on a free poster but fall apart the first time a 2nd grader throws scissors or a high school student refuses to take out … Read more

We know peer pressure often carries a negative connotation in our classrooms, but can it actually be used for good? I regularly bring up the concept of positive peer pressure, and it consistently earns me a few sideways glances. “How can peer pressure be positive…and can you give examples?” they ask. As always, I’m happy … Read more

There’s a moment that happens somewhere around the sixth week of the school year. You’re not thinking about it when it occurs. It just happens. A student drops their pencil case, and without a word, three others are on the floor helping. Another child shares something personal during morning meeting, and the room sits in … Read more

I’ll never forget my first real test with classroom management. It was back in 2007, and I was standing in front of a packed high school history class at a nationally ranked academic school, convinced I had everything figured out. I’d spent weeks planning my lessons, designing my PowerPoints, and organizing my classroom rules into … Read more

I remember standing in front of my first class of 9th graders back in 2007, absolutely convinced I had everything figured out. My carefully color-coded classroom rules were posted prominently on the wall. My reward system was ready. I’d read all the blog posts, attended the professional development sessions, and taken copious notes during student … Read more

I walked into my first classroom in 2007, and if there’s one piece of advice I now give to new teachers during their first week of professional development, it’s this: your classroom walls are not your décor; they are your co-teacher. For a long time, I fell into the trap of treating my bulletin boards … Read more

At any level, teachers are always trying to figure out what actually works for their students. But preschool is its own thing entirely. Preschool children are often in a group learning setting for the very first time, and nobody has handed them a manual on how this whole “school” thing works. Early childhood educators have … Read more

Once I mastered student-led learning, I always had colleagues asking me about my style of classroom management. There was often the appearance that my students were loud, off-task, and learning was nonexistent. I would often invite those colleagues into my classroom to chat with my students, who would blow them away with their explanations of … Read more

The phrase “classroom management” often makes high school teachers, especially new teachers, cringe, conjuring images of rigid control and constant discipline battles. However, the reality is that effective classroom management is the cornerstone of a positive learning environment where student learning and academic achievement can flourish. High school students are young adults with diverse individual … Read more